Since our last blog post about Zika funding and response, Congress has allocated funding explicitely to support Zika prevention, surveillance, and preparedness. Health departments need to remain lean and effective in responding to the present and emerging risk of Zika and other vector-borne diseases, spending these dollars on programs that will meaningfully target and combat these public health threats.

What Help is Available?

• Facilitating process improvement, strategic planning, and partnership development in five vector control programs, using a vector control population health driver diagram, and publishing a peer-reviewed paper about these activities.
• Guiding four health departments in the development of resources and tools to plan and respond to emerging infectious diseases such as Zika
• Developing a document to provide guidance on community partnerships, implementation, and evaluation steps for addressing Zika (forthcoming in 2017)
• Leading webinars for cross-sharing and peer learning with other vector control programs, including Practical Approaches for Zika Preparedness and Response
• Presented sessions on vector control and safe drinking water at the National Environmental Health Association Annual Environmental Conference